Eva Wei
by LabyrinthineTwilight
Summary: AU Eva's mother died when she was five but her father didn't dump her at the Stern Boarding school. Instead he throws himself into work and building Wei Enterprises leaving Eva alone most of the time. She never goes to Oban or Alwas.
1. Prologue

AU Eva's mother died when she was five but her father didn't dump her at the Stern Boarding school. Instead he throws himself into work and building Wei Enterprises leaving Eva to herself most of the time. She never goes to Oban or Alwas but she does get into racing to her father's ire. This is Eva Wei's life as a normal girl.

_The two were neck and neck as they rounded the final lap of the final race of the Interplanetary Championship. I take a deep breathe, the scene is too familiar. I've been here before and a part of my thinks I know the ending to this scene. I try to close my eyes to block what I know is coming but they won't move. It is as though the world is frozen as they come closer to the finish line. I gulp down the lump in my throat. An explosion flashes across the scene and I see the star racer crash. The flames dance around the wreckage and the paramedics come to the pilot's aid. The crowd cheers._

_Then the scene changes. There is no wreckage; no scorch marks were fire had burned the pavement. The two racers are again nearing the finish line. At the last minute one pulls ahead and crosses seconds before the other winning the race. The crowd bursts into cheers. The winner gets out of the cockpit of her racer revealing a young girl. Another flash and it's a woman with pink hair._** Mommy. **_Then the flash is over and I'm face to face with the winner, me. My own red eyes stare back at me as though I was standing before a mirror. _**Eva.**


	2. Chapter 1

_**Eva POV**_

I woke up to my alarm clock blaring right next to my ear. By then I had realized that the dream had been a mixture between two memories, my mother's crash and my recent victory on the same track. That's right Eva Wei; the daughter of the great Maya had beaten the finalist from Gul, Tarum. I just shrugged it off. To me it's just racing, even though I loved it and it was my passion, I tried not to let it all go to my head. I drug myself out of bed and unwrapped the sheet that miraculously tangled itself around my waist at some point during the night. I brushed my hair out and tried to get it to look something like hair and not some birds nest.

I sighed. It had been a week since I won that race and a month since I moved up from the minor leagues. Already it seemed like things are changing. Endorsements from companies I had never heard of and companies that wanted to sponsor me so that I'd advertise for them, my dad had to create a team of people to handle it. I knew that if I made it in to the big time these things would happen but not this fast. My room had been reorganized to fit all my new stuff. The sunglasses alone needed their own 6 foot tall cabinet and I had no clue when I'd ever wear them all. Then there was everything else.

"Don't forget you have school today, Ms. Eva," Maria, our maid called through the door.

I decided to take a shower and then get dressed. My closet had been doubled since the victory, most of it was designer worth thousands of dollars a piece that I might never wear, not that I knew where to wear it to. I found my school uniform and grabbed my bag. I passed Maria on my way down to the breakfast room.

"Is my father still here?" I asked.

"No, Ms. Eva he left early this morning."

"Thanks, Chelsea is giving me a ride today and my bikes at school so I'll be ok to get to practice tonight if he calls." _If he cares._ For the past ten years he really hadn't _cared_. Maria and my old nanny were the ones who really raised me. Ever since my mother's death he'd pulled away throwing himself into building up Wei Ind. and leaving me behind.

I heard a car horn outside and I grabbed an apple on my way out. Chelsea and Morgan were waiting for me in Chelsea's convertible. I hopped into the back seat with a grin.

"Long time no see, champ." Chelsea said with a wicked grin as we drove out.

"I've been busy," I said lightly.

"You missed all the excitement over your win and the school's new co-ed-ness." Morgan said with an evil grin.

"Oh crap, I totally forgot!"

"Does your dad know? I mean last year he was ready to call in his contacts in the government to get you out of the dance but freshmen are exempt from it."

"I doubt he remembers, not like it matters he's so busy he'll probably never notice."

Every year Galla Academy for Girls held a dance with the Darmouth Military School for Boys but in order to make sure the students were able to interact they put the students together at Galla and paired them up. The year before when I had been a freshmen and starting my real career as a racer my father made me sit it out. He had kept me in all girls' schools since I started my plan to become a racer. That year there would be no arguing, it was school policy, to make sure girls would be able to communicate with their male counterparts.

"Did they hand out assignments yet?" I asked.

"Yeah, the boys start today actually. Don't worry I'm sure they left you someone." Chelsea said.

We pulled in to the parking spot next to my bike. Once we were out we noticed all the boys in dressed down military uniforms standing around on the quad. "Come on, I need to check in on everything I've missed." I said walking into the school. "Headmaster Danaher should have it in his office."

The three of us made our way into the school. A group of three boys walked up to Morgan and Chelsea with large smiles on all but one of their faces. I held back letting them do the talking. Meanwhile I focused on the third member of the group. His hair was two different colors, black and yellow, and he seemed like he had a too-cool-for-this attitude. I bit my tongue thinking that I needed to get to the Headmaster's office before the bell rang but I didn't speak.

"Who's your friend?" One of the boys asked finally looking over at me.

With those words their heads all turned to me. "I'm Eva Wei." I looked at the girls. "I gotta go."

"Oh, come on, we have time, the bell doesn't ring till…." Morgan looked down at her watch. "Oh."

"I told you I gotta go, I'll see you guys in fourth hour." I started to walk away but the other guy stopped me. "Yes?"

"You're Eva Wei; we're partners for the time being. I'm Jordan Wilde," he extended his hand and I took it with an awkward smile. "Where are you going?"

"She's been out for a while, the headmaster has all her missed assignments." Chelsea said jumping in. "Don't worry we'll get you to first hour safely."

I nodded and ran off. Along the way students from both schools cheered me on with congratulations. The office was busy with double the amount of workers as usual. The secretary pointed me on to the headmaster's office with a small smile. Two people were in the middle of Headmaster Danaher's office, the second wore a military uniform and the two were talking quietly as I approached. I knocked on the door frame gently. Danaher looked up and smiled when he saw me.

"Welcome back, Ms. Wei, I have your missing work right here and the name of your partner right here." He picked up a small stack of paper and a small card. "Jordan C. Wilde. There's a picture on the card if you can't find him." He handed me the stack of paper and the card.

"He is a good soldier, ma'am, a little hot headed, though." The other said.

"I've met him, sir." I nodded.

The bell rang as I'm walked to class. My first hour teacher smiled and nodded for me to sit. Several classmates gave me high fives as I past. Jordan was seated next to me and gave me a weird look about all the attention I'd been getting. I shake my head like I'd tell him later. Somehow I made all day without having to tell him anything. Last hour we missed an announcement about my championship victory. It surprised me that Jordan didn't know anything about it. The only reason the girls at Galla knew anything about the racing world is because I was a professional racer. Our group met back up in the parking lot around my bike that had been left at the school for a week. I had changed clothes just before so I could drive to work comfortably. Waiting for me on the bike was a bottle of oil and a note.


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

I held the bottle up and whistled. It was more expensive than I'd ever buy for anyone. Before I could read the note my cell rang and I had to rush to get it out. I flipped it open and put the bottle down sneaking out of the group to take the call. The others grabbed the bottle and the note quickly. The looks on their faces told me they had realized, like me, that the bottle was extremely pricy. The only thing they knew that I didn't was who had sent it.

"Hello?" I asked.

"Miss Eva, its Cassandra." The young feminine voice answered on the other end.

"Oh, yeah," despite our very short relationship I couldn't believe I hadn't recognized her voice. Cassandra was one of my father's many secretaries that he'd had over the years. She was the one on duty when I' won so the day after the race she'd taken the liberty of sending me a large bouquet of flowers. Most of them were pretty nice. And, like anyone else who worked around my father and I, the long list of secretaries knew the relationship, or lack thereof, between the two of us. Normally they got fired around the time they got comfortable enough with him to try and "help" our father-daughter bond. Not the best idea. "What's up?"

"Your-Mr. Wei, wanted me to let you know he'd like you to come up to his office as soon as you arrive." She paused and I held my breath. "I wish he would do this himself. I swear the two of you-"

I cut her off before she went too far. "Thanks, Cassie. Don't worry about the two of us we manage pretty well. And, seriously don't say anything like that to him. He doesn't take it well. I get it you think saying something will change it, the most it will do is get you fired. So please just don't."

"Alright. I'll see you when you get in." her voice is dejected but it's for the better.

I hung up and sighed, making my way to rejoin the group. Thinking about how I would manage the situation gave me a mega-headache. According to procedure I had to take Jordan with me everywhere but if my dad saw him he'd make assumptions and Jordan would be dead along with my career. Not to mention an extreme cut in my paycheck. If that happened I wouldn't be going to the dance two years in a row. In my head a cursed everyone and everything I could think of who could be to blame for all of this. I wanted to scream but knew better, which sucked.

"I got to get to work. My dad needs to talk to about something and he won't say it through his secretary." I gave organ and Chelsea a forced, closed lipped smile without meeting their eyes.

"Your dad doesn't call you himself?" Michael, Chelsea's partner, asked.

I shook my head and Chelsea kept him from asking anything else. Somehow I finally got the note and got a chance to read it. At the bottom it was signed Marc Antony. I ground my teeth at the thought of him signing it with his trademark to cool for you smirk. I stuffed it into my pocket and took back the oil. Placing them both in a safe compartment, I got ready to leave but was stopped by a large male hand grabbing my elbow and pulling me back.

"What?" I growled.

"Remember, we're partners for the next month? I'm supposed to go with you." Jordan said.

"Let me put this as simply as possible for you to understand. Think about where I go to school, the fact that I have a job, look at my friends, and now think. What's missing from the picture? A boyfriend, perhaps? Now why would that be? Maybe because my dad doesn't want me to have one! Last year I didn't do this because my dad threw the world's stupidest hissy fit and made sure no guys came near me. For some reason, this year he forgot and I'd like to keep it that way." I looked him in the eyes daring him to challenge me on this.

"You work for your dad?" Steven asked from Morgan's side, Morgan who was trying to stop him.

"Yeah."

"No offense but you're dad doesn't seem to care about you that much." Jordan said.

The girls stiffened. "He hasn't cared, not since she died."

It was the first time I'd admitted the fact out loud to anyone, even myself. Jordan took a step back apologetically but it didn't help. Pain exploded in my chest, I guessed where my heart was supposed to be and all I could think about was the crash. The orange flames danced across my face and I could feel their heat. There was nothing but the roar of the flames and the shadowy figure before them, staring into my eyes without the decency to apologize. I shivered despite that heat.

I revved the engine and peeled away from the school with the others merely watching. For the longest tie I just felt numb, empty yet heavy. Driving by instinct I was almost blind to the world around me. I finally reached the long drive up to Wei Ind. I parked in my assigned place a new perk but the joy was lost on me at that moment. I walked in and left my helmet at the front desk. Cassie was waiting for me on the ground floor in front the elevator. She bit her lip and muttered into a headset.

"We need to get up there." She said nervously.

"What's going on?" I asked taking off my riding jacket a backpack.

"Your father expected you here five minutes ago. I did fib and say you got caught behind a minor accident on your way here and were thus detained. Remember that." She checked something on her info pad. "After your meeting you have an appointment with the training staff and then an experiment run around the outdoor track just to make sure you're still fit to fly. And then you have a meeting with Jeffrice Benway, he wants your team to do some work on his racer."

"What's this meeting about?"

She turned and looked at me shaking her head. "I don't know. He won't tell me anything but the President, THE President, is here." I gave her a look of disbelief. "I know. I don't think you're in any trouble or your father but he still wouldn't say!"

"It'll be ok." I handed her my belongings as the doors opened. "Everything will be just fine."

She put my things behind her desk and took her seat. Pressing a button on her intercom she announced to my father I had arrived. He didn't respond but she continued to motion me in to my father's office. I took a deep breath and entered. The President turned as I did so but my father didn't even look up. I stood up a little straighter and opened my mouth to ask either of them the purpose of this meeting but the President beat me to it.

"Ahh, you must be Ms. Wei. It's a pleasure to meet you and I'm glad to be able to congratulate you in person." He said taking my hand and shaking it.

"Thank you and the pleasure is all mine I assure you." I said glancing at my father who still sat stiffly at his desk avoiding looking at me. "May I ask what this is all about?"

That jolted my father out of his daze. "You are not going to use her like this!" He said.

"What's going on?"

The President looked me in the eyes and motioned for me to sit. "Recently, the Earth Coalition has made a peace agreement with the kingdom of Nourasia. Talks are going well and the Nourasian leaders are coming here to finalize the peace treaty. The young Prince is a racer of sorts himself and we would like you to race against him in an exhibition match."

"Why me?" I asked leaning forward.

"They were here when you won your race against Tarum, they thought you would be a challenge for their son. They are here if you would like to meet them…"

"Unfortunately, Eva has a meeting with the training staff now. Perhaps later." Icy black eyes locked on to my own and I took that as my hint to leave.

"Perhaps they could watch your processes to get an idea of Ms. Wei's abilities."

I bit my tongue not wanting to be in the middle of the conversation. The man across from me may have been the President but he was on dangerous ground. Lucky for him my father couldn't touch him. I, on the other hand, was his child and employee. He would slash my paycheck and limit my time in a star racer if I didn't do as he said or if the President somehow got me to be this Prince's opponent. I stood up and gave my father a short nod. Then I turned to the President.

"It was nice meeting you but I really should get going."

I didn't give either one a chance to respond before I rushed to the door and to the elevator. Down on the second level was where all the trainers worked including the medics and doctors who worked in rehabilitation and diagnostics. I changed into some running clothes and went in for my physical. They checked my vitals and then it was time for my endurance test. By the time they had me wired the President and his entourage arrived in the viewing room. I did my best not to focus on them and when I was done I did my best to leave quickly.

"How is she?" my father's voice was slightly concerned but I just rolled my eyes.

"She's fine; everything is on par with her last checkup. Her stress levels are up but that could be for any reason, she was being watched." The head doctor said.

I caught the Prince looking at me with deep blue eyes. I made a face and pulled on a long sleeve over shirt before leaving. Changing once again, I headed out to the track where a ground crew already had my racer waiting for me. I got in the cockpit as soon as my father escorted the group once more out to watch me. The engine purred to life beneath me. I took a deep breath and rolled my shoulder, preparing myself for a go around the track.

"You ready Ms. Wei?" my coach asked.

"Yeah," I said revving the engine.

"Go."

I accelerated to full speed on the first lap before I gained the speed necessary to do y customary loops and rolls. In the middle of my third lap my coach startled barking orders for moves I was sure were being dictated by my father. I performed each move with precision. Still when I exited the cockpit I was ready for my usual harsh evaluation. The surprise came when my father didn't even come over to talk to me afterward. Instead it was the Prince that came to greet me after my go around the track.

"That was amazing, I have never seen anything like that. Where did you learn to do that?" He asked.

"I didn't learn them, I just do them. They're in my blood." I started to walk away until the President called me back.


	4. Chapter 3

"Ahh, Prince Aikka, I see you've met Eva. She is Earth's youngest champion and if she agrees your opponent." The President smiled.

I looked at my father for a moment and seeing nothing but distaste for the race in his cold eyes. Looking at the serene eyes of the prince and then back to my father something snapped. I smiled at the President knowing full well that what I was about to say could, and probably would, end my carrier. "I'd love to."

The Prince smiled back and the President went on about the good I was doing. I was still smiling even though I could feel the cold anger radiating off my father. No matter what I kept my eyes focused on anything but him as the conversation went on. I was not introduced to the King or the Queen yet but the President assured me that I would be in due time. Until then I was to prepare for the race as I normally would. After they left I rushed to my bike and called Chelsea telling her to come over to the house. As an afterthought I messaged Chelsea to meet me at the pool house. I hoped that if I hid out there my dad my cool down enough for this to all just blow over.

Maria helped me carry some of my stuff out understanding all too well that I had screwed this up myself. After I'd moved in I just sat in the living room waiting. If my mother hadn't died, would I be in this mess? Or would it not matter because I'm just a natural screw up. I slid back into the couch to the point where my butt was beginning to hang off when I heard them coming. There was no need to get up; Chelsea had a key ever since the last time I had to hide away there.

"Look, we'll go see the movie tomorrow or something, but this is an emergency," Chelsea said.

"She has a pool house…she has a pool!" Jordan said with disbelief.

"When we were younger, before she started her career as a racer, this was our clubhouse, our hideout. We would make her nanny so mad." Morgan chuckled.

A small smile tugged at my lips before it slipped away again at the memory of the current situation. "Hey, Eves, what's up?" Chelsea asked slowly as she entered the room.

"I did something stupid, extremely stupid." I said pushing the heels of my hands into my eye sockets.

"What happened?"

Chelsea sat down next to me and put her hand on my shoulder. "Something extremely idiotic," I sighed. "Putting it simply, my dad said no and I said yes and now my entire career is on the line over a stupid exhibition race."

"The phone call earlier, that's what it was about? An exhibition match?"

"The President is pushing an alliance with Nourasia. The Prince of Nourasia is some kind of race and by honor of my great 'victory' I'm the one whose supposed to race him. My dad was not pleased with the offer and didn't want to do it. I got pissy and agreed to it. Now my dad is super mad at me. He holds power over my entire career, my paycheck….my whole life." I said standing up and being to pace the living room. "There goes me going to the dance, my career, and he knows hat but he knows it would be worse for me to change my mind now."

"What do you mean about the dance?" Steven asked.

"I've been saving up for a dress and for everything else, now it looks like the only way I'll be getting anything is to raid what I've already put into savings for college."

"Don't you have some oversized trust fund?" Jordan asked mockingly.

"Yes, but I can't touch it, not until I've graduated college. My dad never even gave me an allowance. When my mom died, by the way, if you ever want to see that look up Maya Wei's crash, the vid is out there. Anyway after that my dad went off the deep end. I never saw them, I had a nanny, someone to raise me because he couldn't, and she had a limited budget with which to do it. I lived almost the same life you did, except I didn't have parents. The only time I had the life your thinking about is when it suited my father. On my ninth birthday my dad gave me a job, not a list of chores, a job, at Wei Int. For two months I worked within the Janitorial services and then I got a promotion. By the time I was twelve I was working with the mechanics and then at fourteen, I was given my own team. By then I had been training to be a racer for more than four years. Everything I've had since then I've bought myself, only recently did the free stuff come in."

The room was silent. The three new comers didn't know any of it; they knew only what the public knew. I grimaced, my father's reaction would be swift, and no doubt he sat in his office plotting just that at that very moment. I stopped pacing. There was nothing that could be done about it. My cell rang in my pocket and with dread I pulled it out. For the second time that day Cassie was calling me with my father's words, but I doubted this was by his order.

"I'm so sorry, Eva, I t-tried. I really did." Cassie cried.

"Shh…Cassie, what's going on? What happened?" I asked doing my best to keep myself calm.

"I tried t-to s-stop him but he w-wouldn't listen." I could hear her truly weeping over what my father had done. She took a deep breath. "Tomorrow he will announce that you are ending your career after your race against the Prince. Along with that, your pay will be cut in…in half. I couldn't do, so I quit but I left a little gift. The cut, it won't take effect until after the race."

"Thank you," I kept my voice steady. "Take care of yourself, Cassie." I hung up and dialed the head of my team of mechanics.

"Hey boss, heard a nasty rumor, bad stuffs about to go down." Darrell said.

"Indeed, did Mr. Benway stop by today?" I asked.

"He did indeed, wasn't too pleased. He left his racer here but we didn't touch it. Didn't even say what was wrong."

"Have him come in tomorrow around nine. My metal works teacher should let me video conference him in. Tell him I'm sorry but I had to think about the President's offer and I didn't have the time to stop by the pit. He should buy that. As for the nasty, I'll handle that, you stay clear and keep your nose clean, got it."

"Yes, ma'am."

I hung up and fell back into the couch. There were no words to describe my feelings or the situation I had started. It was hell, it was war and I had started it. It could only end badly for all parties involved. I had to limit the people involved. Sitting up slightly I saw the light on in my father's room in the main house. It had to be use fighting in this. Maybe a couple of others, lawyers and secretaries thinking of what I'd have to do to get wht I wanted, what I wanted back.

"Work?" Morgan probed.

"My career is over." I stated.

"Don't be dramatic; I'm sure everything will be fine." Jordan said.

I looked straight at him and stood up. "That first call was from my father's former secretary. She quit because my father is ending my career and cutting my salary because I agreed to race against some Prince in some stupid race. Exactly what I was saying earlier. You don't go pissing off an employer." I sat back down. "The good news is Cassie, on her way out, "messed up" on his order to cut my pay. It won't take effect until after the race, in a month. Which means I have a month to figure things out."

Chelsea rubbed circles on my back. _One month….what am I going to do?_


	5. Chapter 4

_Fire licked the sky, the heat shimmered in the air around me and the black smoke choked the air from my lungs. My hands pounded against the tinted glass. I was trapped. Breathing was getting difficult but I could just see the rescue workers trying to put out the flames. I couldn't breathe; the smoke was filling the cockpit. I punched the glass once more but I was getting weaker. Through dimming eyes I saw a tall dark figure standing just outside the reach of the flames. There was something familiar about it. Looking past it a saw a small girl. I turned around…Mommy…._

I sat up gasping for air. Dreams like that were coming more and more often, it didn't help with all the stress that I had barely got to sleep before the dream. Getting out of the pool house bed I looked at my father's house in the pale blue predawn light. My father would not be up for another half hour and school didn't start for quite a bit. I decided that if I wasn't going to sleep I might as well do something and went for a relaxing swim. Doing laps was natural for me, years ago coaches advised me to keep myself fit and one of the activities they'd mentioned was swimming. Moving through the water like I did was what I assumed it felt like to fly in its own way.

When the Sun finally rose over the horizon I rushed back into the pool house to shower. I leaned against the steel shower walls. My dreams of my mother's death were getting worse and my relationship with the only other family I had wasn't fairing any better. What was I supposed to do? Risk intergalactic relations to appease my father? I had already agreed to the race, there was no getting around that. Still the President had to know what was going on, sense my father's anger. But I couldn't get him mixed up in this, it would be a scandal.

"Oh Mommy, what should I do?" I whispered.

As I got out the phone rang. I answered it from one of the panel coms in the bathroom. "Good morning Chika! The sun is shining and the birds are singing." Chelsea said.

"I'm up, I didn't really sleep anyway." I said putting on enough make up to look decent.

"Still stressed?" she asked her voice softening.

"I'm fine, you worry about you and I'll handle my dad. Which will be fun, yay." I tried to sound sincere but it only came sarcastic instead. "Look I'll get myself to school today. Are you picking everyone else up?"

"I am indeedy." She sang. "You're sure you're alright?"

"No, but I'll find some way to handle it. See you later."

We hung up and I went to get dressed. After grabbing some breakfast I picked up the specs for Benway's racer. By the time I got to school Chelsea's car pulled up next to my bike and Jordan was out immediately. It took everything I had not to verbally bit his head off. I grabbed my bag and went to stand with them on the lawn.

"So do you have to work tonight?" Jordan asked.

"No, actually, I have a stack of homework to do and I have to figure how to fix my career and still do my job. But of course everyone's welcome to come over and sit in my living room as I do that." I snapped at him then sighed. I really just wanted to crawl back into bed.

"Need coffee?" Chelsea asked.

I nodded. Whenever I was stressed or tired or just started snapping the girls knew to put a cup of good coffee in my hand and leave me alone. We headed to the coffee kiosk in the school's cafeteria to pick it up. I had a free period first hour and I spent it in the computer lab. Jordan sat with me bored out of his mind as I worked on going over some specs for a few of the racers my crew had in. Luckily it was the off season and most of the racers just needed simple tune ups not major work. Just before the bell rang we skirted in to the computer lab barely safe. Sitting down at the nearest one I went over Benways racer. He'd be in an off season exhibition race and had run into something or other. The dent was cosmetic but I was more worried about what was underneath.

"So, what is all this?" Jordan asked.

"The inner workings of a rather simple star racer. One I have to fix." I said.

"Simple? Looks complicated to me."

"Well, I grew up with racers, this _is_ simple, trust me."

The problem wasn't as simple as I'd thought. Benway'd been in major rec in his last race that had messed with his ships innards. Using a program I'd created I took the ship apart piece by piece to see which parts were damaged. I sighed. Jordan watched over my shoulder as I deconstructed the broken or compromised parts. Most of them could be fixed only a few would have to be ordered. I wrote down my plan of attack. Unplugging the chip with the specs I stood and moved to the door just as the bell rang.

"Where to now?" Jordan asked.

"Shop, though I call it mechanics."

"They have that at an all girl's school?"

"Yep, they have almost everything here. They say they want us to have every opportunity." I watched Jordan out the corner of my eye as he scanned the building. He didn't seem to understand any of it. "The girls that go here are the daughters of some of the wealthiest and most powerful people in the world. For most of them their future was set in stone the moment they were born. They don't have a choice."

"What about you?"

Most of the girls here had been trained since birth to inherit companies or to be wives of politicians. My childhood had been nothing like that. When my mother was a live the company was so small it made so little. After my mom became big in the world of racing everything had taken off. And then she died. My dad stopped talking to me, put everything in to the company. Suddenly I was heir to billions of dollars in assets and contracts. I had been so alone. I put myself into anything but my family, separated myself from my father. Now look what we'd done.

"I don't even know if I have a future anymore."

I could feel him staring at me as we entered the classroom. Some girls had second hour free so they had brought the guys here to spare them the boredom. Some of the guys knew Jordan and called him over. I watched thinking about Jordan's future. Considering the respect he had from peers and his commandant he had a promising career in the military should he choose that. Shaking my head I went up to the teacher and talked about using interface board in the back of the room. He agreed. After handing over the gloves he sat down to do some work with the guys.

I slid the hands free over my ear. "Set up. Interface Wei Industries office number 7634."

There was a beep signaling the transfer and another when the line was connected. "Hey, bossy lady. What's up?" Darrell asked.

"Putting you on vid screen now. Is Benway there?"

"Yep, right here."

"Put him on. I figured out how to fix his ship." I waited a momently watching as the two appeared on screen and Darrell handed over the headset. "Mr. Benway, hello, we haven't been properly introduced. My name is Eva Wei."

"It's a pleasure. I hope you'll take care of my ship. I'm not keen on the idea of another racer taking apart my ship."

I managed a chuckle. "I understand." I slipped the chip into its slot. "This is a scan f your ship, the scan itself was noninvasive and helps us to get an idea of what's wrong. These red areas are points of interest. These five," the screen zoomed in on five different parts, "can be repaired without replacement. This one," the part turned yellow, "will have to be replaced. After that it's all cosmetic."

"Good, good. Thank you, Ms. Wei; I'll leave your team to it."

I nodded and let him go. As soon as he hung up I closed the file on his racer and opened one of my blue prints. The design was sleek, designed for speed and aerodynamics. I had originally started the design as a tribute to my mother's racer but had trashed the vintage aspect and gone for something slimmer. The only problem with it was the shape the metal would have to be in would make it too vulnerable and weak to go at such high speeds. Any metal strong enough would be too heavy. I sighed and turned the whole thing off. The Cloud 2.0 would have to wait.

_**Hehehehe hint hint. Spot the references and the clues.**_


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

I handed the gloves of to my teacher a sat back next to Jordan. The group he was sitting with was gathered round a smart phone watching a live vid. One of the guys looked up at me then back down. Something sunk in my gut. My father's press conference. Right now, right this very moment he was out there telling the world that I was quitting, giving up on everything. Pulling my stuff together I gave the teacher an excuse and just ran from the room. I couldn't handle this. Not now. Not ever. I sat down at one of the outdoor picnic tables with a sigh.

"Ms. Wei," a voice said.

I jumped and looked up into the eyes of a suite. "Hello."

"I'm with the President's Secret Service detail. You need to come with me." He noticed my hesitation. "The school already knows."

Standing up he took my bag and lead me to a car. Scratch that, a limo. Four other officers guarded it as the first opened the door for me and then sat down beside me. I tried to figure out what was going on as the rest moved into position and the limo pulled away from the school. This obviously had to do with the race and the Nourasian Royal family but this was not a good time. Was I supposed to meet the King and Queen in the middle of a crisis? No doubt I was. I had agreed to the race. That meant I had to act as a Diplomat for the Earth Coalition.

"Where are we going?" I asked.

"You need to change."

Suddenly I recognized exactly where we were. "The pool house, I'm staying in the pool house."

The driver nodded and pulled up the long back drive. When we came to a stop my seat mate opened the door and helped me out. The house was silent now that my dad was off at work _and _not talking to me. I started to walk in to my room to get changed. The officer grabbed my arm before I could. He pulled me close and whispered in my ear about, "something nice." He was just doing his job but it was more than a little annoying. Di they really think I would dress like some….some slut. I walked away.

"Twenty minutes."

I rushed into the house and dug through the piles of cloths from sponsors. Some of the dresses were too formal for a lunch date and some would never be worn. The dress I finally found one that was appropriate. The top was loose and pink, more like a poncho, and the bottom was a black pencil skirt. I didn't have much of a chest but it didn't take away from the dress. I slid on an old pair of black flats and grabbed a lace clutch purse. Scanning over the cosmetic cases I found a simple lip gloss and carefully glossed my lips. As soon as I was done I threw it and my phone in the clutch and rushed outside.

"Good enough?" I asked sarcastically.

The man nodded and motioned for me to get back in to the car. Sliding in I take my phone out of my little clutch. _Don't wait up. Meeting w/ Pres.- EW _A moment later Chelsea responded that she would tell Jordan and take him home. I sighed. There were so many things going on that it crossed my mind that this was probably a diplomatic meeting with the Nourasians. Maybe I would get to meet the King and Queen. Perhaps I would never be formally introduced. I didn't know. I'm not sure I cared. Somehow the very idea of the race and my rebellion had become disgusting. But the option of turning back was too far behind me. What I needed to worry about was how to override my father's decision.

The limo drove through the country and then down the coast. With the way the driver was going I could see just over the side of the cliff and the rocks below. The waves crashed hard against them. I was being taken to the President's private villa, his own summer residence. He was probably hiding them away there, no need to get the media hyped up yet. The race might be in question after my father's announcement. A wave of nausea hit me. They would ask me about it, I knew they would. Suddenly the car stopped.

"We're here. They're around back waiting for you."

I slipped out of the car on the opposite side and fix myself a little. From what I could see of the house it was beautiful. I felt a little under dressed for the locale. The butler led me into the house and let me in to a powder room to freshen up. As I stood in the marble room I couldn't help but stare at the obvious features my parents had given me. I had my father's black hair and black eyes. The rest was my mother, my jaw, my pale skin, and my height. What would she say to me now?

"Ms. Wei, they're waiting." I quickly re-glossed my lips.

As soon as I stepped out of the room the butler escorted me the rest of the way out on to the patio. I found myself staring out on to the blue sea and the horizon and the place where they met. The sun reflected easily of the white stone of the patio and the stairs down to the lower platform. I stepped up to the railing and stared down at the group. Before I could stand there long enough to observe them a guard placed a hand on my back to guide me to the stairs. He blocked my path back up. Despite the tense situation the scene was quiet beautiful with the light breeze and the sounds of the waves on the shore. I straightened my back and walk towards the group lounging and drinking tea.

"Ah, Eva, you made it. And don't you look wonderful." The President said standing to greet me.

I nodded and shook his hand. I tried my best to focus on him but my mind and eyes wandered to the table's still lounging occupants. The Queen was lying on her side on a chase lounge and next to her, the King sat rigidly on a chair. The theme of bright whites and light blues contrasted with their deep copper skin. Still I couldn't deny that I was the one out of place. Then I turned my eyes to the Prince. His deep blue eyes gazed at me with barely hidden curiosity. His lips pressed together to hold in his questions until he was spoken to or brought up.

"Your Majesties, this is Eva Wei Earth's youngest pilot to win an interplanetary race. Eva, I know you've met Prince Aikka but I'd like to introduce you to his father King Lao and his Queen, Queen Nori."

"It's an honor." I said with as graceful a bow as I could manage.

"Please, have a seat. This is a chance for you to get to know them better." The President pulled out the chair in front of me and gives me a look. "I want this to be a friendly meeting between our people."

Sitting I found myself looking into the suffocating eyes of the king. I swallowed thickly and looked away. I didn't want to be disrespectful but he was a scary man.

"Well, Ms. Wei, I must say it is a pleasure to meet you in person at last. My son has not stopped speaking of you sine he learned you were his opponent." The Queen said bringing my attention to her. She smiled sweetly. "My son says that you claim your moves are natural and I can't seem to find anything to contradict that." The king snorted.

"My mother was a racer." I said bluntly then rushed to explain. "You could say I claim her as my inspiration but she died before she could teach me anything about racing. I go back and watch her races and stunts trying to learn from her. It's hard. Looking at the outside of a racer it's very hard to determine what she was thinking or how she moved in the cockpit. That you have to be told."

"So in a way you taught yourself?"

"Yes."

We talked more. At some point the conversation switched from racing to my schooling and then in to my personal life. Food was brought out to us and we turned the conversation to Nourasia and the culture of the planet. They valued honor and technology was nearly unheard of on their planet. It shocked Eva that they would even think of allying themselves with the Earth coalition but they explained that it was due to the nature of Earth's relationship with the Crog Emporium that made the alliance so appealing. Nourasia and the Crog home planet were close and the Nourasian people wanted security from their expanding neighbors. Since Humans and Crogs were not friendly the Nourasians hoped that Earth would come to their aid should anything happen.

After our meal the President pulled me aside and took me for a walk down the shore line. He waited until we were a ways away before he spoke. "I understand you and your father are in the middle of a little spat. It won't be a problem, will it?"

"No, sir."

"I hear it a little differently then, because I was watching a press conference today hosted by him and what I got from it was not so pleasant."

"I'm handling it, it won't be a problem."

He grabbed my arm and stopped us. "Good, because if it goes any farther and those statements aren't retracted soon I'm going to have to recommend that you sign with another agency. I have big plans for you, Eva, I don't want anything to get in the way of that. Understood?"

"Of course."

What had I gotten myself into? My father had been in control of my life since I was five years old and I was just now breaking his hold over me but was I walking into another trap? I stood there looking out at the churning blue waves. Just on the horizon was a batch of dark clouds that heralded an oncoming storm. How fitting. I slipped off my shoes and dipped my toes in the tide. The water was cool and within moments my feet were covered in cold, wet sand.

"Canaan says that there is a storm coming so we cannot go swimming today." The Prince said stepping up beside me. "Perhaps you will come back and join me and my family for a day in and on the water."

"It would be my pleasure." I said.

We walked back up the beach. A butler came down from the house with water and towels to wash our feet. Saying goodbye to the Prince I walked back through the house to the limo that had brought me all the way from the pool house. My stomach dropped when I realized that the security detail had doubled and another two cars had been brought around. Still I slid in expecting my former seatmate to join me. Instead the door slammed behind me. The President was waiting for me.

"I thought we might continue our conversation from earlier." He said seriously. "I plan on creating several alliances. Many of those planets have similar traditions as us. They enjoy races. You have proved today that you can be diplomatic even under extreme duress. Imagine what you could do for me when things are calm again."

I nodded. There was nothing I could do now. I had made this bed now I would have to live with the consequences. They let me off at the pool house. As they did the President eyed me. Things were worse than he'd thought and now he knew. I spared one look at the window to my father's bedroom. I had to talk to him soon or things would be worse. I went inside the pool house and called Maria. My father would be home in a few hours. She had my school work left for me by Chelsea and I told her to arrange for a family dinner in my father's house. It was all I could do.


End file.
